Tolls are charged by governments or private companies for many reasons: to raise revenue, to reduce traffic levels, or to pay for construction of, for example, a road system or bridge. The general principle is that to use a section of road, roads within a predetermined area or areas, bridge, or area of the road network, a toll charge is payable. The toll can be charged for in many different ways: for example on a time in increments from minutes to hours to daily basis, on a per-use basis, or on an amount of use basis.
Numerous systems have been made for the electronic payment of tolls whereby sensors interact remotely with devices carried by passing vehicles or persons and, for example, a pre-paid token or pre-paid card in the device is cancelled or partially cancelled as payment. These do not provide a positive feed-back inter-action with the facilities used. Misreading and defective products give rise to increased losses to the operators and users alike at times. The absence of any reliable form of confirmation that the toll has been discharged is problematic.
Mobile or Cellular phones are being used for making payments, whereby the customer opens an account, enrols/registers/purchases devices first to permit for the payment service and then every time a payment has to be made, the customer sends a text message consisting of a security code, the amount to be paid and other pertinent data to a special access number. For example, it is known to use RF ID technology for making road toll payments using SMS text messages. In road toll systems, the mobile phone or cell phone is simply waived “to be seen” on a Reader located on top of the gate. In toll ways, the customer drives through the toll plaza and as long as the mobile phone is located within the driver's area it will be automatically sensed by a Reader installed on the side of the toll booth. The RF ID chip with memory can either be in the form of a thin flat module which is attached to the back of the cell phone or embedded in the SIM card inside the mobile or cell phone.
The main problem with all automated toll charge payment systems requires users to set up an account or have their vehicle or phone retro fitted with a RF ID device to allow for automated payment of the toll. This is problematic as many people are not sufficiently technically minded to set up an account or simply are not aware as to how to set up an account. In addition to this the requirement of setting up accounts furnishing personal, financial and other details together with account maintenance costs is unacceptable. For example, European Patent Publication number EP 1 583 038 A1, assigned to C.R.F. Societa Consortile per Azioni, discloses an automatic toll pay system where an on-vehicle unit is installed in the vehicle which has a receiving function for receiving toll information when the vehicle passes through a toll area. The on-vehicle unit is adapted to co-operate with a mobile phone that provides a communication channel to allow the on-vehicle unit send/transmit toll payment information. There are two problems with this system, the first is that each vehicle is required to be retro-fitted with the on-vehicle unit and secondly each vehicle must be pre-registered with the toll operators that requires financial details of the vehicle user in order for a toll to be paid.
Another problem is for non-frequent users or tourists when passing through an automated toll charge system is very difficult to monitor and enforce. As a result, some people will forget to pay road tolls charge occasionally, or not realise that they have to pay a toll charge, and these people will end up with a fine. Alternatively, people who do not know how the system works, or that it exists, may not be aware that they have to pay it or how to pay it.
A further problem with remote toll charge payment systems is in maintaining the ability to pursue those who have not paid while preserving the principle of anonymity to adhere to privacy legislation in some countries. A growing resentment on the part of consumers being required to disclose personal, financial and other details to drive on the roads is also a factor.
A typical operating system provides a photographic or video camera recognition system may be positioned on or adjacent to a gantry to photograph the number plates of vehicles in a road toll charge system the passage is recorded and stored. Such photographs or more usually video/digital image recordings and are of no monetary value being discarded if the toll payment transaction were completed satisfactorily. Alternatively microwave or radio tag identification association with the vehicles or communication devices might be employed however these can also be the source of difficulty. False and misreading errors occur frequently with certain conditions, such as adverse weather, condition of vehicle registration plates and improperly sited cameras, inoperative tags or RF ID devices for example.
The existing method of enforcing payment is to arrange that the defaulter is traced through the registration details recorded by the license plate camera. This is compared with the central database of vehicle registration numbers for contact details attached or associated with the vehicles in default. It is this default group that is processed using the system of written notification and demand for payment on terms. These traditionally include the imposition of late payment charges, fines and legal proceedings in the event that the toll charge remains outstanding. This gives rise to significant increase in costs associated with the use of the toll charge facilities to the consumer and by reason of costs incurred, public relations fallout, to the toll charge operator. The restriction of methods of payment by toll charge operators is considered by solicitors or lawyers as being in breach of competition requirements and could give rise to a determination that it constitutes an unlawful imposition of a penalty, such a situation, requiring repayment in due course of millions of currency units to consumers affected.
In addition to this aspect of the operation, as exists at present, the false reading/error of tags in or on vehicles fitted with a RF ID device is the source of consumer dissatisfaction. When this is challenged in the courts is likely to result in damages for breach of contract against the tag/toll operator. Because this is a foreseeable result, this gives rise to significant resources being invested in call centers and infrastructural facilities to deal with complaints arising. The costs to the toll charge operator in public relation terms is high, particularly when the consumer is of the view, rightly or wrongly, that they did nothing wrong. The existing default procedures result in the issuing of letters of demand and legal enforcement procedures.
There is therefore a need to provide a system and method to facilitate a simple mechanism for toll charge payment by customers or users of toll charge systems that overcome the above mentioned problems.